Container



Nov. 19, 1968 E, 'M H 3,411,693

CONTAINER Filed Feb. 15, 1967,

INVENTOR Evgene E. Macoh i ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,411,693 CONTAINER Eugene E. Macchi, Ho-Ho-Kus, N.J., assignor to Continental Packaging 'C0rp., Kenilworth, N.J., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Feb. 15, 1967, Ser. No. 616,210 Claims. (Cl. 229-29) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A container the interior of which may be viewed from opposite sides throughout the length of the container, but with the contents of the container adequately protected from breakage, said container including a tray retained from inadvertent displacement from either open side of the strap-like carton which longitudinally enwraps the tray.

Cross reference The invention is an improvement upon the structure disclosed in my prior US. application S.N. 558,502 filed June 17, 1966.

Summary of the invention The invention is essentially a two-member container comprising an elongated tray and an endless strap encompassing the tray longitudinally thereof and constituting a tray-receiving carton laterally open at its opposite longitudinal sides and having closed ends which are adapted to be engaged by the ends of the tray and interlock therewith to deter inadvertent disengagement of the carton from the tray or slipping of the tray out of the carton. Interlocking of the tray with the top and bottom panels of the carton is also included as a feature of the invention. If so desired, the assembled and loaded tray and carton may be enclosed in a transparent wrapping.

Brief description of views of the drawing FIGURE 1 is a horizontal sectional view on a plane immediately below the top panel of the carton and showing the tray in complete plan view;

FIGURE 2 is an elevational view looking toward an open longitudinal side of the carton;

FIGURE 3 is a cross-sectional view of the tray only, taken on line 33 of FIG. 2; and

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of the container on which has been applied a transparent wrapping.

Detailed description An elongated tray is shown having cup-like pockets 11 wherein eggs 12 may be stood and retained in separated protected position. As here shown, there are two rows, side by side, each row having six pockets, so that the container is adapted to carry a dozen eggs.

A strap-like carton 14 of equal length to the length of the tray and open at its longitudinal sides is provided to enwrap the tray lengthwise, the ends of the carton being closed by end panels 16 and adapted to frictionally engage the ends of the tray. The carton is a paper product which is preferably smooth on its outer surface, but has corrugations on its inner surface, said corrugations extending longitudinally of the top and bottom panels and vertically on the end panels of said carton. Movement of the tray either for insertion into or removal from the carton therefore has to be in a direction transverse to the corrugations of all panels of said carton and is retained by frictional engagement therewith. The lengthwise disposition of the corrugations also functions to deter lengthwise bowing of the panels at the same time affording a degree of resiliency in the panels.

Tray 10 has a general height at its two longitudinal ice sides outwardly of the pockets, of less dimension than the height of the carton (here shown as approximately half of the carton height) so that eggs 12 in the pockets 11 will 'be exposed to view above the pockets at the longitudinal sides of the tray and carton. Between pockets, the tray is formed with upstanding posts 20. The over-all height of the tray and its posts corresponds to the height of the carton from bottom to top panels thereof.

The tray provides means for interlocking with the corrugations of the carton. According to the present showing, such means includes a peripheral rim 17 which, at the ends of the tray, provides teeth 18 which project in a direction longitudinal to the length of the tray in a location adapted to interengage the teeth in corrugations of both of the end panels 16. Resiliency of the panels accommodates forceful sliding of the teeth across the corrugations to position of final disposition therein, or retraction therefrom. Furthermore, the bottoms of the pockets 11 may also be provided with downwardly projecting teeth 21 and the top ends of posts 20 may likewise have teeth 22, all of said teeth 21 and 22 extending in the same general direction in the bottom and top portions of the tray so that there is an interlocking of the teeth and corrugations when inserting the tray into the carton through an open side of the carton. Again, it may be said that resiliency of the carton panels accommodates forceful sliding of the teeth 21 and 22 across the corrugations, but deters inadvertent disengagement of the tray from the carton laterally from the long side opening of the carton.

If so desired, the container, after loading, may be enclosed within a transparent wrapping 23 which may conveniently be provided with a rip-strip 24 midway of the length of the container, girdling the same, permitting the container to be broken thereat for a customer desiring only a half dozen eggs.

The container of the present invention permits viewing all of the contents thereof without disturbing any part of the container and yet provides for readily extracting the tray and access to and use of the contents. The tray remains intact When removed from the carton and may be re-inserted thereinto if so desired. The carton is completely reversible in use with the tray, that is, the top of the carton may be located for use as the bottom and the bottom as the top, and either end panel may be engaged by either end of the tray, both the tray and the carton having corresponding symmetry of rectangular configuration.

I claim:

1. A container comprising an elongated carton formed as a belt-like endless strip, said carton thereby being open at both opposite longitudinal sides thereof and providing longitudinal top and bottom panels and end panels integral with and positioning said top and bottom panels apart in parallel relation, said panels having corrugations longitudinally thereof directed inwardly of the carton, and a tray having a width and length corresponding to the width and length of said carton insertable laterally through an open said side of said carton and making frictional retaining engagement with panels of said carton, said tray having a peripheral rim in a plane parallel to and substantially midway between said top and bottom panels, said tray providing article-receiving pockets below the level of said rim plane and providing open space toward both sides and above said rim thereby permitting view through each open side of the carton of all articles next to the respective side of the tray for the portions thereof protruding from said pockets above said rim plane, said corrugations providing for said frictional retaining engagement by said tray, said tray providing teeth having shape corresponding to the transverse contour of said corrugations and engaging in a plurality of corrugations of at least one of said panels promoting said frictional engagement.

2. A container in accordance with claim 1, wherein said teeth project from said rim at the longitudinal ends of said tray into said corrugations of both of said end panels of the carton.

3. A container in accordance with claim 1, wherein said teeth project at the bottom of said tray into corrugations of the said bottom panel.

4. A container in accordance with claim 1, wherein said teeth project at a top portion of said tray into corrugations of the said top panel.

5. A container in accordance with claim 1, wherein said teeth are provided both at a top portion and at the bottom of said tray and project into corresponding corrugations of the top and bottom panels of the carton.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,990,145 2/1935 Swift 229-29 X 2,197,510 4/ 1940 Ringler 22928 3,224,618 12/1965 Vigue 2l726.5

DAVID M. BOCKENEK, Primary Examiner. 

